ABSTRACT
Meringues are the backbone of a range of both sweet and savory dishes, such as souffles, macarons, angel food cake and dried shrimp patties, also known in Mexico as “tortas de camaron”, and are responsible for much of the structure stability of these foods. Care must be taken during whipping, as it is very easy to overdo it, which is manifested by the formation of evident tiny “lumps” that forecast the imminent collapse of the foam; if this point is reached, there is no choice but to start over with new egg whites. It is well known, however, that the incorporation of an acid (best practice is about 1.5% w/w) significantly increases the stability of meringues against over-whipping, because, according to H. McGee, the decrease in pH delays/inhibits the formation of disulfide bonds among ovalbumin molecules.
